Associated PressNew Orleans Saints running back Kyle Eckel (36) stretches at the start of practice at the club's training facility in Metairie, La., on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2010.
Patriots fans likely remember Kyle Eckel as the nth-string fullback who got some play in Foxborough during the 2007 season.

After spending 2008 in Philly, Eckel landed with the Saints. Now on the verge of the Super Bowl, Eckel's dismissal from the Naval Academy is drawing some attention.

Technically it's called an "involuntary separation," which is a nice way of saying that, 17 months into his five-year military obligation, Kyle Eckel was dismissed from the U.S. Navy. He also was ordered to repay almost $100,000 toward his education.

This was not a public relations move. Nor was the Navy trying to do him a favor. In civilian terms, the Navy fired Kyle Eckel -- and to this day, nobody will say why. Not the Navy, which declined interview requests through the Pentagon, and not people within the Navy football program, who deferred the question to Eckel. And not Eckel himself. He's not saying.

And it only gets worse from there. Although it needs to be noted that nothing Doyel finds is conclusive evidence.

Previously a mention of Eckel on MilitaryTimes.com garnered some harsh criticism of Eckel from anonymous commenters.